Projectile.



W. B. ALEXANDER.

PROJECTILE.

APPLICATION FILED DEc.a, I9I4.

1,277,028. Patented Aug. 27, 1918.

177 I 2 SHEETS-SHEET I. /f// ,I "g

WfB. ALEXANDER.

PROJECTILL APPucATioN FILED Dc.8. 19m.

Patented Aug. 27, 1918.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2- MM )5. CZLLAcaMoCr/r- 6MM w ATTORNEYS WIM/8858 ms vonnis mans sa. Hum-urna, wAsNmamN. n cA WILLIAM IB. ALEXANDER, 0F BROOKLYN, NEW YORK.

PBOJECTILE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 27, 1918.

Application filed December 8, 1914. Serial No. 876,026.

To all 'whom z't may concern:

Be it known that I, VILLTAM B. ALEX- ANDER, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the borough of Brooklyn, county of Kings2 city and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Projectiles, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to projectiles and has for its object to provide a projectile which will explode only after having penetrated the target or other object being tired at, to a predetermined extent or after passing beyond its initial striking point on said target or other object. My invention further contemplates a projectile which is simple in construction and reliable in operation and which is particularly adapted for destroying or disabling aerial craft of any type. My improvement will be fully described hereinafter and the features of novelty will be pointed out in the appended claims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings in which Figure 1 is an elevation of my improved projectile partly in section as it appears when in position in the barrel of a gun or other piece of ordnance; Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the parts in the position occupied after the projectile has been fired from the gun and at the time of explosion; Fig. 3 is a horizontal section on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1; Fig. l is a similar view on the line 1 -4 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a perspective section of the trigl ger actuating yoke; Fig. 6 is an elevation of the tubular tail rod and Fig. 7 is a similar View of the firing pin or plunger.

As illustrated in the drawings my improved projectile comprises an explosive shell 10 containing any suitable type of explosive 11 and constructed at its rear end or base with an inwardly extending recess 12 internally screw-threaded and provided with an aperture 13 communicating with the interior of the shell 10. The said recess 12 contains a percussion cap or primer lil of any`well-known kind positioned over the aperture 13 and whereby the shell is exploded at the proper time in the manner to be more fully described hereinafter. With this arrangement the firing cap or primer is located at the rear end or base of the shell instead of being positioned at the head or apex thereof as is customary in existing types of shells. The said recess 12 is adapt- The tail rod 16 is screw-threaded at its opposite end as indicated at 17 for connection with a gas-check block 18 of a diameter arranged to fit the bore of the gun or other piece of ordnance from which the projectile is to be fired. It will of course be readily apparent that the tail rod 16 instead of being connected with the shell and gas-check block 18 by screw-threads as shown, may be attachedv thereto in any other suitable manner. The said tail rod 16 serves as a casing or container for the firing pin or plunger 19 which as illustrated is formed with end portions having a diameter adapted to slidably it the tail rod and connected by means of an intermediate relatively reduced -portion 20 forming a shoulder 21. A coil spring 22 surrounds said reduced portion lof the rring plunger or pin 19 and has its `one end in abutting engagement with said shoulder 21 and its opposite end in similar engagement with pins or projections 23 -which are fixed in suitable apertures in the tail rod 16 and extend across the same as shown in Figs. 1 and 2. rl`he said ring plunger or pin 19 is tapered at one end or otherwise shaped as indicated at 241 for impact with the percussion cap or primer and near its other end is provided with a preferably annular notch or recess 25, the purpose of which will appear as the description progresses. In the illustrated form of my improvement four triggers 26 are pivotally connected at 27 with a ring 28 at diametrically opposite points thereof, said ring 28 being rigidly Vsecured at the proper point upon the tail rod 16. The said triggers 26 are provided with arms 29 projecting radially and outwardly from the tail rod 16 or rather the ring 28 and in the operative condition ofthe parts are arranged to extend through suitable apertures 30 of the tail rod 16 into the notches 25 whereby the firing plunger or pin 19 is held in its cocked nected at 33 with the yoke 31 at diametrically opposite points and are under the linfluence of springs 34 each having one end connected with the yoke 31 and the other end secured to the main ribs or members 32 as shown in Figs. 1 and 2 and exerting a force tending to'spread the vribs 32 to the position' shown in Fig. 2. Spreader or auxiliary ribs or members 35 are pivotally connected at 36 with the main ribs 32 and similarly attached Yat 37 to a traveling sleeve 38 slidable lengthwise of the tail rod 16. lf desiredV the shell lOand gas-check vblock 18 may be connected lby means of rods '39 arranged parallel to the tail rod'lG and preferably passing through suitably' arranged apertures in the yoke 31 whereby the latterV is guided in its movement lengthnwise of the tail rod 16 and is held against ln this ymanner rotation relatively thereto. the structure is strengthened and'stiffeiied and the parts kthereof are maintained inthe desired coperative relation with each other. In order that the elements comprising my improved projectile may be'easily and -properly assembled the said rods 39 when inposite ends with flanges 30 which may be connected respectively with the shell 10 and gas-check block" 18 in any well-known way as by'mean's Vofv studs, screws or the like. Any suitable means maybe utilized for bringing the firing pin or 'plunger v19 to its cocked position; for instance, as show-n vin thel drawings the said plnn'ger V19Y maybe 'provided with pin- 41 which extends through Ya slot '42 formed in-l the tail- Vrod 16 Aso as 'to be `accessible from the'exterior in the position shown in full lines in Fig.L

1 after-which the projectile is inserted into the barrel of any suitable gun or piece of ordnance7 the gas-check block 18 being introduced first into'the barrel 'and finally resting against or in close proximity to the powder charge or 'other medium which isto be used to fire the projectile or give it its-intended momentum.Y n this condition vthesprings Y34 are under tension and the ribs 32 are maintainedinV the v*folded position vby the inner surface of the gun barrel, the connected parts occupying the positions shown in Fig. l, it being understood that the firing pin or plunger 19 hasbeen :previously Ybrought to its cocked position vby suitably manipulating the pin 41 in the'slot 42. If the projectile is vto be 'discharged Vfrom a piece. of ordnance 'having a rified barrel,

. the gas-check block 18 and the projectile 10 may be provided with annularV Iprojecting rims y43 and 44 respectively of lead and bismuth or other suitable material, said rims imacat@ f Vvblock, 18 and will force the projectile r`from the barrel in the same way as when firing anv ordinary projectile. As soon as my improved projectile leaves the barrel the springs 34 assisted by .thepressure of the atmosphereV will cause the main ribs 32 Yand spreader ribs to Aassume the 4positions illustrated in dotted .lines in Fig. 1. This operation causes the sleeve l38l to travel `lengthwise of the tail vrod 16 into engagement with' the yoke 31 it being. understood that the force of the impact vof the sleeve 38 against theyoke 31 as this operation takes place is 4not suiiicient to overcome the degree of friction with which the yoke engages the .tail rod so that Vsaid yoke remains stationary on the tail rod and serves as a stop to limit the sliding movement ofthe sleeve 38 and the spreading operation of the ribs 32 and n l j n Y fribs'32 outspread and the. other parts in cluded in the structure are providedV at opthe irino pin or plungerV 19` being mean sol while he d in' the cockedv position shown Vin said ligure-by means ofthe'triggers 26. Assuming that the projectile is being fired at an airship of the dirigible lballoon type and that the gas bag has been hit thereby, the shell 10 will pass through into the interior ofthe bag until-the ribs 32engage :the same or -Ineet with 'other 'resistance ,tending to arrest the Hight or' the projectile. vrThis resistance will exert a pressure Yon the said ribs 32m lopposition to the direction in which the projectile is traveling .and 'owing to; the -fact that said ribs 32 'are Yconnected with the sleeve `38 by thespreaderribs35 .will

cause 'said' 'sleeve 38 a'ndthe: yoke 31l together' with the ribs 32 and'35tomove lengthwise `of the tail rod 16 as a unit. ln 'other words the foree ofthis pressure` will be sufficient to overcome the fri'ctional 'engagement betweeirthe yoke31Y and the tail -rod 16vian`d said yoke in kconsequence of the `above -actuation will'exert 'a pressure fon the 1arms 29 and simultaneously swing all'o'f th'e'triggers-26 out of the notch 'or recess 25 thus releasing the firing pi'n or -plu'nger 19.' The spring22 being now free to act, exerts its pressure on the shoulder 21 and causes the end 24 of the tiring pin 'or'plnger'lQ' to V4st rike against the cap or vprimer 14 and discharge the sameV thus detonating zthe tex plosive 1.1 and exploding theos'hfell y"10 in the interior of the v'gas bag-'ofthe y'air ship.

,This explosion'of the shell will also ignite the gas in 'said gas fbalg thus completely and Veffectivelydestroy the saidVv air ship'.V

. Should the 'target nit'bythe 'projectile be an aeroplane the ribs 32 and 35 would tear through parts thereof and destroy for instance a wing, and at the same time bring about an explosion of the shell, the concussion of the explosion in any case being suiiicient to disable the aviator or at least cause him to lose control of the aeroplane. My projectile is equally well adapted for eEectively destroying the aerials of wireless telegraph either on land or at sea and may also be used in connection with armor piercing shells for the purpose of bringing about internal explosions either in a ship or in a fort. The relatively wide spread of the ribs increases the probability of an explosionh of theshell in the vicinity of the target even though a perfect hit has not been secured and the effectiveness of the projectile is al- Ways substantially at a maximum under all conditions. My improved arrangement is extremely simple and thus not liable to become disorganized and at the same time is safe and reliable in operation. It will, of course, be understood that in some cases one trigger 26 and its cooperating parts will be suiiicient for the intended purposes and also that my improvement may include either fewer ribs than shown or more to meet the requirements of any particular case. The rods 39 may in some instances be also dispensed with without interfering with the operation or effectiveness of my improvement.

The shell may be caused to explode at any desired distance beyond the point at which the target or object is initially struck thereby, by simply increasing or diminishingthe length of the tail rod and firing pin and arranging the ribs and cooperating points correspondingly or the same result may be obtained by shifting the location of the yoke and triggers lengthwise of said rod, it being understood that in this latter case the annular recess 25 and trigger openings 30 would be shifted to correspond.

Vario-us other changes in the speciic arrangement shown and described may be made within the scope of the claims without departing from the spirit of my invention.

I claim:

l. A projectile comprising an explosive shell, a support extending therefrom in an axial direction, means carried by said support for exploding said shell, means for maintaining said exploding means in an inoperative position, a device controlling the operation of said maintaining means, a member movable on said support and having its movement in one direction arrested by said device and means actuated by contact with a target for causing a further movement of said member in said direction whereby the resistance of said device is overcome and said exploding means released to explode said shell.

2. A projectile comprising an explosive shell, a support extending from said shell in an axial direction, means carried by said support for exploding said shell, means for maintaining said exploding means in an inoperative position, a member carried by said support and slidable thereon and means including ribs movable to an extended position and adapted to be actuated by a target foi` slidably moving said member to operate said maintaining means whereby said exploding means is released to explode the shell after it has passed its initial striking point.

3. A projectile comprising an explosive shell, asupport extending from said shell in an axial direction, means carried by said support for exploding said shell, means for maintaining said exploding means in an inoperative position, a device for actuating said maintaining means, a sleeve normally located at a distance from said device and slidable lengthwise of said support into engagement with said device, and means adapted to be actuated by a target for giving 'said sleeve an additional movement to operate said device whereby said exploding means is released to explode said shell after it has passed its initial striking point.

4. A projectile comprising an explosive shell, a support extending rearwardly from said shell in an axial direction, means carried by lsaid support for exploding said shell, a trigger for maintaining said device in an inoperative position, a yoke frictionally secured upon said support in engagement with said trigger, a sleeve slidable lengthwise of said support and adapted to abut against said yoke whereby its sliding movement in one direction is arrested, and means pivotally connected with said yoke and with lsaid sleeve and adapted to be actuated by a target to cause a continued movement of said sleeve in said direction whereby the frictional resistance of said yoke is overcome and said trigger is operated to release said exploding means and explode said shell.

5. A projectile comprising an explosive shell, a tubular rod extending from the base thereof, a gas check block connected with the free end of said rod, a firing plunger in said rod adapted to explode said shell, a plurality of triggers for maintaining said plunger in an inoperative position, a yoke slidable on said rod in close proximity to said triggers, main ribs pivotally connected with said yoke and arranged to occupy a folded position during the firing of the projectile, a sleeve slidable on said rod, auxiliary ribs pivotally connected with said main ribs and said sleeve, means for moving said main ribs to an extended operative position after said projectile has been fired whereby said sleeve is moved substantially into engagement with said yoke, said main ribs in th'eir operative position being arranged to beengaged by the target whereby said sleeve and yoke are moved lengthwise of said rod to actuate said triggers and release said liring plunger artery/the shell has passed beyond its ilnitrialsgtriking point and a spring for actuating said ring plu-nger to explode Ysaid shell. y

6. A projectile comprising an explosive shell, ineans lfor exploding said shell, ineans for maintaining said exploding means iiran inoperative position, lfrictionally held nieans,

and ineans arranged to be actiiated `a target whereby theresistance oi' said trictiona-lly yheld nieans 1s overcoine andthe flatter is caused 4to 'operate said inainta'in'ii'i'g -fineans to release said exploding Vi'nea'n's;

7;. A projectile comprising an explosive shell, A,gas-check bloclthin axial alineineiit therewith, rods connecting said shell fand gas-check block, means 'for-exploding said shell, means for maintaining said exploding Vineaiis -in inoperative position, "means slidab-le lengthwise of said rods and located in cooperativerelation with said in'aintai-i'i-V lingnieans and nieans arranged to be actuated by a target whereby said slidabl'e'niea'ns copies this' paient Smay te obtained "for .isvnioved Arelatively to I-saidv rods to operate saidjniaintai'n'ing I'n'eai'is vwhereby saidfex- *ploding means' is released.`v

A S. A projectile comprising jan explosive shell, a gas-check block in 'a'xial alineinen't therewith, va tubular rod connecting"said Vrod ifor-iringsaid shell, 'nie'ans for inai'ntain- `ing said plunger-iii an inoperative position,

Vmeans for operating lsaid pli'ingen'a yoke Vslidable onsa'id tubular rod, -a .plurality of i rodsvlocated abo't vsaid ltabular rod and keX- vtending between said shellairdblock 'and through saidyolre wherebytheflatt'er is held against rotation on said tl'lbularv Arod, and Y means arranged 'Ito operate said yoke to inov'e f ve ents saab, 1jr-missaire ore commisgioiff lif raam, 'wifsningaaacf Y 

